Max Stassi finds consistent stroke for Astros

Houston Astros Max Stassi (12) stands on second base after his double during the second inning of an MLB game at Minute Maid Park, Sunday, May 13, 2018, in Houston. ( Karen Warren / Houston Chronicle )

Photo: Karen Warren/Houston Chronicle

ANAHEIM, Calif. — He wakes up each morning to ruthless self-criticisms, unwilling to accept the day before, whether it contained success or failure during the most consistent season of an otherwise tenuous six-year major league career.

"Honestly, I just tell myself, 'You're not that good. What are you going to work on today?'" Max Stassi said. "Like, I don't believe in the hype of doing good or the hype of doing bad. I just try to have a consistent routine."

So on Tuesday, he entered the cramped visitors' clubhouse inside Angel Stadium, out of breath and with a heavy sweat. He collected his 18th hit and drove in the only run of the Astros' 2-1 loss on the prior evening, and Tuesday was his off day.

Still, work was required.

Stassi's time in the batting cages is detailed, a "dialed-in routine" he calls it. It does not consist of tee work, front soft tosses or other common routines some of his teammates may use.

"I do a specific set of drills in the cage that work on mechanics without thinking about mechanics," Stassi says, removing the batting gloves from his hands as he speaks.

In the five years preceding this one, Stassi's swing had a tendency to fluctuate, and his bat path was inconsistent. Ensuring he keeps a level plane is paramount, and repeating the swing is essential, too.

"He holds his hands now in a very unique way to continually be able to repeat his swing," manager A.J. Hinch said. "That's not easy to be able to repeat your swing on every pitch in every different location. That's a great advantage for him. But his bat-to-ball skills have gotten a little but better. His bat path has cleaned up. He's starting to learn which pitches that he can handle."

In his first 69 plate appearances, Stassi is slashing .290/.362/.516 with three home runs — equaling his career total entering this season.

He is massacring lefthanded pitching, producing a 12-for-24 showing with four doubles. The consistency is a byproduct of the attention to detail coupled with a sense of belonging and security he previously did not have.

Eighty-nine plate appearances were spread across Stassi's first five major league seasons. He never played in more than 14 games in a season, producing the worry that accompanies most fringe players: whether they'll stick with the big league club or be sent back down to the minors.

After 2017, a season Stassi actually says was the best he'd felt mentally since becoming a professional, he was removed from the 40-man roster. He cleared waivers, meaning all 29 teams passed on his services.

"Looking myself in the mirror after 29 other teams passed on me through waivers," Stassi said, recalling another bitterly poignant self-discussion.

"You have to make some adjustments because no one thinks you're good enough to play in the big leagues right now. That really woke me up, and you have to really swallow your ego and realize the improvements you need to make."

He has done so.

"I know the work that I've put in and the trust I have in my hitting coaches," Stassi said. "It's definitely paid off, but it's just the beginning."

Chandler Rome joined the Houston Chronicle in 2018 to cover the Astros after spending one year in Tuscaloosa covering Alabama football — during which Nick Saban asked if he attended college. He did, at LSU, where he covered the Tigers baseball team for nearly four years. He covered most of the Astros' 2015 playoff run, too, as an intern for MLB.com

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